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Published 21 February 2012 Share close Share page Copy link About sharing Beluga whales are among rare species spotted at, or near to, proposed Scottish sites for marine renewable energy projects, a report says. Also known as white whales and sea canaries, beluga whales live in Arctic and sub-Arctic waters. Sightings of the species were made off Caithness in 2005 and 2007, according to information gathered for the Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) report. The review looked at the Pentland Firth and the sea around Orkney. The study, called "Abundance and behaviour of cetaceans and basking sharks in the Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters", was prompted by the opening up of new sites for marine renewable energy. Among the findings was that some proposed locations for wave and tidal energy development overlapped with important areas for cetaceans. The report's authors - Hebog … [Read more...] about Beluga whale sightings in SNH marine renewables report

By Steven McKenzie Published 21 July 2011 Share close Share page Copy link About sharing The risks to whales and dolphins from tidal turbines are a "potential show-stopper" for marine energy plans, according to researchers. The warning comes as a study will examine possible sites where animals injured by turbines could end up stranding. The new University of the Highlands and Islands is offering a postgraduate studentship in the research. UHI said how the animals would behave around turbines was unknown. The development of marine renewables in Scotland is still in the early stages with prototype devices being built and tested. A report published in 2010 on the potential benefits of harnessing wave and tidal power suggested £2.5bn could be spent in Scotland and 5,300 jobs created by 2020. Industry forum Scottish Renewables and development agency Scottish Enterprise … [Read more...] about Whale and dolphin turbine injury risk to be studied

At right, Hal Prince, Stephen Sondheim, and Mary Rodgers at the Rodgers-Guettel Christmas party in 1965. Photo: Courtesy of the Rodgers-Beaty-Guettel family In the four years between her explosive separation from Jerry Beaty in 1957 and her Mexican wedding to Henry Guettel in 1961, Mary Rodgers (1931–2014) composed the music for Once Upon a Mattress, ushered the show to Broadway and London, assisted Leonard Bernstein on his Young People’s Concerts, and wrote songs for everyone from Bing Crosby to Captain Kangaroo. All this while raising three young children and juggling many unlikely husband prospects, including the producer Hal Prince; a married editor she called Boston Jack; her Mattress lyricist, Marshall Barer, who was gay; and a CIA operative named Cord Meyer. Finally, there was the man she had met and fallen hard for at Oscar Hammerstein’s farm when she was barely a teenager: Stephen Sondheim. Would their affection take the turn they’d described in a song they … [Read more...] about A Trial Marriage to Stephen Sondheim

By Dan O'Brien Published 14 minutes ago Share close Share page Copy link About sharing A woman who uses an electric wheelchair said she was left feeling stressed and humiliated by the way she was treated by an airline on a holiday flight. Geraldine Freeman, from Swindon, flew from Bristol Airport to Tenerife in the Canary Islands with Jet2 in July. She said her outbound journey was "embarrassing, uncomfortable, stressful and humiliating" because of the "very undignified way" she was treated. The airline has apologised and said it is improving staff training. Ms Freeman told BBC Radio Wiltshire she is no stranger to foreign travel and like many passengers with disabilities, she has endured some horror stories over the years, but her recent experience has prompted her to speak out. She has disabilities caused by thalidomide and has no legs, and told Jet2 about her … [Read more...] about Swindon wheelchair user ‘humiliated’ by airline treatment

Published 30 May Share close Share page Copy link About sharing An ailing killer whale has been found dead after swimming up the River Seine in Normandy, France, activists say. The four-metre male orca was first spotted two weeks ago near the river's mouth, but made its way dozens of miles upstream towards the city of Rouen. A plan to guide it back to the sea using sound stimuli failed, and experts concluded it was seriously ill. The authorities had been preparing to euthanise the animal but activists say it died of natural causes. Environmental campaign group Sea Shepherd tweeted that the orca's corpse was found at 11:48 local time (09:48 GMT) on Monday. Reuters quoted the group's leader Lamya Essemlali as saying that by Monday it was "a ghost of an orca" and died before any attempt could be made to put it to sleep. The activists said they were staying with the body to … [Read more...] about Sick killer whale ‘found dead in France’

By Paul Pigott Published 16 April Share close Share page Copy link About sharing A lifeboat volunteer said he spent days in hospital after contracting a parasitic infection linked to sewage after a river training exercise. David Deveney suffered giardiasis after spending two hours in the River Severn and said an investigation found an 80% chance it came from human sewage. Sewage was spilt into Welsh rivers more than 95,000 times and for more than 791,000 hours last year, figures show. The illness has not been categorically linked to sewage or spills in Wales. Both the River Severn and River Wye, which end in the Severn Estuary, run through Wales and England. Welsh Water, which provides water and wastewater services to most households in Wales, said the spills had "a limited impact" on Welsh rivers. Mr Deveney, a lifeboat training manager with the Severn Area Rescue … [Read more...] about River pollution: Rescuer infected with sewage-linked parasite

Published 1 August 2015 Share close Share page Copy link About sharing Marine researchers have said a beluga whale has been sighted off the County Antrim coast near Dunseverick. It is believed to be the first time the Arctic species has been recorded in Northern Irish waters. Dr Peter Evans, director of the Seawatch Foundation, said a fall in sea temperatures could be why the whale strayed so far from its usual habitat. "A beluga whale is extremely unusual," he said. "It's the first record that we know for Northern Ireland and in fact there's only been about a dozen in 50 years for the whole of Britain and Ireland. "On the whole, over the last sort of 10 years, certainly the sea temperatures have been generally warming, but at the same time there have been a number of anomalies where you've got actually significantly cooler waters and that seems to be the case here." There … [Read more...] about Beluga whale seen off County Antrim coast near Dunseverick